


Roommates

by amazingrace24



Category: Underfell - Fandom, Underswap - Fandom, Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, Alternate Universe - Underswap, M/M, Multi, also rated teen and up just for a bit of profanity here and there, idk if that name's been taken, new thing i'm doing, roommates!AU, someone tell me if it has
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-09-24
Packaged: 2018-07-24 17:20:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7516732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amazingrace24/pseuds/amazingrace24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been a year since the barrier fell and the Underfell brothers are looking to move away from the big city surrounding Mt. Ebott. Little do they know that when it fell, it decided to spit out more than just them into one universe, something that comes as quite the surprise when they find themselves moving in with their Underswap counterparts. What happens when you throw four crazy skeletons into one household? A lot. A lot happens.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Scaredy babybones

**Author's Note:**

> 'Nother question: What happens when you get fucked in the ass by the dick that is procrastination? You end up with a half-finished next chapter and the start of some random new AU.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a drabble (more like a one-shot, it’s a bit long, and I'm it'll end up being part of a series if I actually write) was inspired by a prompt and also by this one time I remember when I was younger and staying at a close friend’s house and the power went out for a little over an hour and we all (her parents and both her younger siblings) ended up on her parents’ bed (well her dad was in a chair but the rest of us were on the bed) telling stories and reading scary ones from the internet until the lights finally came back on (the last one i read out loud was really long but i finished it i kid you not like seconds before the lights came back on it was weird)
> 
> OT3 prompt: Person A (Blueberry) used to be afraid of thunder/lightning. Person B (Stretch) usually comforts them. One day there is a freak thunderstorm, and Person A pretends they’re still scared so that Person B will pay special attention to them. Person C (Edgelord) is actually also afraid of thunder/lightning, but refuses to show it to seem tough, but eventually ends up a shaking mess and Person B has to take care of both A and C.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn’t actually my ot3 I just saw the prompt and found it cute and they immediately came to mind. I tried to find a way to fit Red into there, but felt those three worked best for the bulk of it. Note that this is the first time I’ve written the US bros so idk how on it’ll be. And I mean this is kind of a crude drabble anyway I’m just taking a break from trying to finish the next chapter of floabt
> 
> Oh and for dialogue, I did different things for the characters to differentiate so it doesn’t get too confusing hopefully. 
> 
> UF Papyrus/Edge=ALL CAPS (doesn’t necessarily mean he’s always yelling); US Papyrus/Stretch =Normal Capitalization; US Sans/Blue(berry)=bold; UF Sans/Red=all lowercase
> 
> Also one more thing, warning (?) for a like super mild panic attack scene, it's really not bad at all (like i've never had one myself, just have friends who have), but just in case

“WHAT WAS THAT?”

“What was what?”

Edge squinted his eyes, trying to pinpoint the faint rumble he thought he’d heard. When there was no follow-up, he returned to the browning meat on the stove.

They were all together in the kitchen, Edge cooking and Stretch helping Blue with a school assignment. Red had gone out drinking with a group of friends, so it was just the three of them that night.

“ **I think I heard it too** ,” said Blue, glancing up from pad of paper he was making notes on.

Stretch sat back in his seat, balancing the chair on its back legs precariously.

“ **Papy don’t do that, you’re going to fall,”** Blue admonished, which was only effective when paired with a pointed glare in his brother’s direction.

Strech made a show of coming down, loudly dropping back to the ground and sliding in the process.

“YOU’RE SCRATCHING UP THE FLOOR,” was Papyrus’s only comment.

They went on in silence for a good while, only broken by the occasional tip from Stretch to Blue on his wording and verb tenses.

Oh, and a sonorous clap of thunder that practically shook the entire house.

The spatula in Edge’s hand clattered to the floor. For a second no one moved.

Stretch’s head turned slowly to his brother, checking to make sure that he wasn’t panicking. Storms had bothered him since he was a child, and it was typically up to Stretch to comfort and attend to him. At the moment Blue didn’t seem too frightened. His own darker counterpart, on the other hand .. 

“Hey, Edgelord –”

“DON’T CALL ME THAT.”

“You alright over there?” He continued as though he hadn’t been interrupted.

Edge scoffed and lifted his chin, wondering how he was expected to dignify such a preposterous query with a response. Of course he was alright, and he told them as much. 

It was clear to both of the other skeletons in the room that he was not, in fact, alright. His iron grip on the counter’s edge and the ever so subtle rattle of his bones were dead giveaways that he’d been effectively shaken by the thunder.

The first boom wasn’t the last, and moments later pouring rain could be heard dancing on the roof and tapping on the windows.

One blinding flash of lightning was the only warning they got before the power went out. The burning stove was the only source of light in the room, the sound of sizzling sausage out of place in the otherwise silent dark.

Edge took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. His soul was pounding a mile a minute, but he fought to keep the panic from clawing its way up his throat. His mind was all over the place, jumping form incoherent thought to incoherent thought, unable to focus on any but always coming back to one: he really wished his Sans was there.

“You okay, Sans?” Stretch asked, failing to use his nickname in a moment of concern.

“ **Mhm.”**

“Alright, I’m gonna go grab some candles from my room,” he waited a second before going on, expecting a snide comment from Edge about his poor choice in candle scents that, oddly enough, failed to come. “You two wait here.”

One thing they didn’t have to wonder about was where Stretch was; he left a trail of loud curses as he knocked and crashed his way through the house.

Finding his voice, Edge called out, “YOU’D BETTER NOT HAVE RUINED ANYTHING OF VALUE!”

“Who’s house is this again?” Stretched called back.

Edge only grumbled, unable to come up with a retort.

Although Stretch may have been too far away to notice, Blue could hear the slightest hint of a waver in Edge’s voice. “ **Are you sure you’re okay? Y’know, Papy tells the greatest stories during thunderstorms. I bet he’d tell you one if you asked.”**

For a moment he seriously considered taking him up on the offer, but even scared out of his bones he had half a mind to worry about his pride, so he declined, scoffing and saying, “STORIES ARE FOR BABY BONES. I DON’T NEED ONE.”

“ **Suit yourself** ,” he shrugged.

A minute and lots more swearing later, Stretch was back in the room and using a paper towel and the burner on the stove to light three different scented candles. No doubt they’d mix to create a cacophony of smells, but that was the farthest thing from his mind.

His suggestion that they move to the living room to get more comfortable on the couch was met with a rather emphatic protest from Edge, who still stood stark by the stove. ((oo hoo hoo some unintentional alliteration there. imma just leave it like that))

“NO! I MEAN ... I NEED TO FINISH COOKING, SO WE NEED TO STAY IN HERE ... AND IT’S PROBABLY BEST THAT WE STAY TOGETHER.” He tried to muster up the most convincing tone he could but he frankly wasn’t fooling anyone.

In truth he was trying to avoid going near any windows at all costs. There hadn’t been thunderstorms in the underground, but they’d been living on the surface for almost a year and he never failed to freeze up during one. The sounds were bad enough as it was, but somehow watching lightning streak across the sky was, while fascinating to his brother, extremely terrifying to Edge. There’d even been a time, before they’d found their duplicates, when they were at a store when a storm started up, and Red had kept him near the back by the display of televisions playing to distract him while they waited it out. They were there until closing time, when the manager came by and let them know that they needed to make their final selections and leave. Red had explained over a protesting Edge that his younger brother was deathly afraid of lightning, to which the manager only apologized and reiterated his statement.

Without any other choice, Red had suggested to Edge that he teleport them home, but Edge hated teleporting almost as much as he hated storms, so he’d used their car as an excuse, saying he didn’t want to leave it and didn’t trust Red to come back and get it home safely. He finally got Edge to agree to at least teleport to the car and jump in so that they could wait it out there.

Wait it out they had, for another three hours, all of which were spent in the backseat with Edge’s head in Red’s lap talking and even singing in an only half-successful attempt to block out the sounds of the storm.

The house they resided in now had a kitchen with no windows, an attempt at somewhat replicating their home back in Snowdin, and also happened to be the room in the house where Edge felt safest.

All of this of course was unknown to Blue or Stretch, but neither bothered to question Edge’s motive knowing that it would likely only be met with more excuses.

So Stretch settled into a chair with a blanket he’d brought down and Blue in his lap and began telling a story.

It sounded rehearsed enough that Edge figured it was one he’d told many times before. He acted aloof but was secretly holding onto every word, grateful for the distraction as he went through the motions of making lasagna.

He took the noodles off of the stove, moved the pan of sausage from the burner, retrieved mushrooms and spinach from the fridge and two jars of sauce from a cabinet, and went through the motions of assembling the dish.

“Y’know you’re not gonna be able to use the oven, right?” Stretch said suddenly midsentence.

“OF COURSE I KNEW THAT. WHAT DO YOU THINK I AM, STUPID?” He hadn’t actually considered the fact, but they didn’t need to know that.

Stretch rolled his eyes, then tried to go back to his story.

“ **What’s wrong?** ” Blue asked after a moment’s hesitation.

“Can’t remember where I stopped.”

“THE CHILD WAS ABOUT TO OPEN THE DOOR AT THE END OF THE HALL, WHICH WILL LIKELY BE LOCKED BUT I SUPPOSE IT’S WORTH A TRY ... I’M JUST GOOD AT MULTITASKING AND YOUR HORRENDOUS VOICE IS NEAR IMPOSSIBLE TO BLOCK OUT,” he said in response to the questioning stares he was receiving.

Stretch only shrugged and continued speaking in a hushed, soothing tone that Edge found begrudging solace in.

Thirty minutes had passed and the power was still out. Edge was finished stacking his lasagna, all that was left to do was bake it, which he couldn’t, so he ended up standing in front of the sink staring at the wall with nothing left to distract himself with.

Typically during a storm, one of the rare times he would show his weak side, he would curl up with Red in a closet or windowless room and listen to him read Murder Bunny out loud like he had when they were kids, and he’d bury himself into his brother in an attempt to block out the storm. Just thinking about the way he would deliberately read as close to his skull as he could to project over the sound of thunder yet still soft enough to lull Edge to sleep had Edge feeling a pang of longing that he wasn’t too familiar with.

Noticing Edge’s stillness, Blue proposed once again that they move to the couch, and without a reasonable excuse to argue with Edge steeled his nerves and told himself to suck it up. It was just noise and ... electricity that could kill him in an instant ... but Red always said that was very unlikely so his fear was completely irrational, right? He was the Great and Terrible Papyrus, nothing scared him, especially not a bunch of light in the sky.

That and he wasn’t about to display any weakness to the other two skeletons in the room.

So he nodded and watched as Blue and Stretch got out of their chair and started heading towards the living room. He followed behind, feeling his heart rate begin to pick up, but he ignored it as best as he could, focusing on each step he took instead.

As soon as he stuck a foot past the doorway the room lit up, but not in the way he’d been hoping for.

For a moment he couldn’t move, couldn’t speak, couldn’t breathe as the flash of lighting sat suspended in the sky for what felt to him like entire minutes. Someone was saying something to him, or at least he thought they were, but all he could hear was his own frenetic breathing.

It took Stretch a moment to notice that they were one skeleton short, and when he turned, ready to make fun of Edge for actually being afraid of something, he froze.

Something was wrong.

Edge was clawing into the door frame something fierce, and his eye sockets looked almost vacant, the size his pupils were.

Stretch rushed over and speaking in the most mollifying manner he could. “Hey, Edge. Papyrus. I’m gonna go ahead an assume it’s the storm getting to you, do you mind if I move you back into the kitchen?”

He figured the slight nod he received was as close as he’d get to confirmation, so he took him carefully by the hand and guided his stiff, rigid body back into the kitchen and coaxed him into a chair while rubbing small circles into his back.

“Sans.” Edge seemed to come back a little at that. “Can you watch him for a minute while I go and grab some more blankets?”

“ **No, you stay. I’ll go grab some.** ”

“But you –” 

“I’ll be fine, I’ve been cool with storms for a while now.”

Stretch was about to question since when, but there were more pressing matters so he thanked his brother and went back to calming Edge down.

A good ten to fifteen minutes later they were all seated underneath the table inside a fortress made from pillows, blankets, and even couch cushions, as Blue thought they might help to muffle out the storm some.

With no ulterior option Edge had complied when told to join them, but he sat as far into a corner as he could. He was left alone with Stretch when Blue suddenly dashed out of the fort, shouting at them that he’d be right back.

The silence was gradually becoming less comfortable as Edge noticed the other skeleton watching him what was probably meant to be discreetly. He didn’t need an eye kept on him, he wasn’t a child, and the next thing to come from Stretch’s mouth had him thinking doubly so.

“Y’know, I get you like to keep up your little macho routine but it’s seriously okay to be scared sometimes.”

“I KNOW THAT.” The response held less of its usual bite, because not-even-that particularly-deep down he _was_ truly grateful for their company.

In a bout of sympathy – because most typically he didn’t care too much for the guy – Stretch scooted towards Edge and wrapped a tentative arm around him. He supposed his allowance of the action was Edge’s own form of thanks.

The blanket draped over the entrance to their fort shifted to reveal Blue armed with a small pile of books, who climbed over the pile of pillows covering the floor and made himself comfortable draped across both Papyruses’ legs.

The beginnings of a protest were forming in Edge’s mouth, so Stretch picked up the book at the top of the pile and began reading aloud before he got the chance to voice it.

Trapped between two brothers, Edge had no choice but to sit through whatever sickeningly cheerful story Blue had picked out. It wasn’t long before he was drifting off, the inflections in Stretch’s voice the only thing filtering into his exhausted mind.

Stretch himself was reading absently after a while, his thoughts wandering elsewhere as the familiar words left him practically from memory. When he finally noticed that the two younger skeletons on top of him were asleep, he closed the book and set it gently beside him.

The table leg digging into his spine was beginning to feel rather uncomfortable.

The nearest pillow that wasn’t underneath him was just out of his reach, and he didn’t want to move and risk waking anyone, so he sighed and tried his best to shift into a position that wasn’t so painful.

His own eye sockets were beginning to drift shut when there was a slight buzz as the power came back on. It sounded like the worst of the storm had passed, leaving only a light, calming drizzle tapping on the roof.

With almost frighteningly perfect timing, Sans came through the front door not a second later.

“boss, i’m back,” he called out like he always. Stretch could hear the crash of a ring of keys hitting a table, the clunk of shoes as they hit the floor after being tossed haphazardly. It was too much noise. He couldn’t very well shout at him to quiet down, so he dug through his pockets in a carefully frantic search for his phone to text Red to come to the kitchen. He just hoped he didn’t ignore it like he tended to.

He must’ve hoped too soon, because Red called out for Edge again using that name Stretch had never understood. He sounded ... worried? Well, Stretch would suppose that Red would know about his brother’s fear seeing as it couldn’t have been the first time he’d seen a thunderstorm on the surface.

Red was headed past the kitchen to check their bedroom upstairs when he noticed first the candles, then the impossible-to-miss what he assumed was a fort sitting in the center of the room underneath the table. The chairs had all been turned upside down and set on top to keep the several blankets draped around structure in place.

“Down here,” he heard a voice whisper.

Dark(ish) house, candles lit (not sticks but still), mysterious enclosing (at least it hadn’t been there when he’d left)? If it had been a horror movie (and if he’d been the type of person to be scared by those annoyingly frustrating tropes) he’d have noped the fuck out of there.

But it wasn’t.

And he wasn’t.

So he knelt down and pulled back a blanket that looked enough like an entrance and peeked in. The space underneath was filled from corner to corner with pillows, and on top on the far side sat two sleeping skeletons on top of a third who was giving him a hilariously pleading look.

He simply ignored the slight pang of jealousy of either Stretch of his brother. He was having trouble telling what exactly the source was.

“lookit you, mr. caretaker,” he chuckled.

“You gonna help me or what?”

Red held up a finger, the universal sign for ‘hold on’, before backing out of the fort and heading to his room to change into something that didn’t smell like smoke and the cheap beer someone had spilled on him, then turning out all of the lights as he made his way back to the kitchen.

He blew out the candles sitting on the counter before climbing back under guided by the light of his phone. His first task was to move Blue, who sat on top of the small pile. Though Red wasn’t the strongest monster by a long shot, Blue was light enough to move with ease. Once he’d lifted him over to the opposite side of the fort he turned back around to get Edge next.

The same sure has hell wasn’t about to happen with his brother, so he gently shook him half awake, surprised that he wasn’t already considering he was typically a light sleeper. The storm must have taken a lot out of him.

Edge only seemed to register that his Sans was there now in front of him, and in one motion he pulled him down beside him (thankfully turning over enough to allow Stretch to escape) and wrapped him up into his arms, back asleep in an instant.

Red, who was trying hard to hide the light blush creeping up his face, surprised himself by nearly growling a “don’t you dare” when Stretch jokingly proposed taking blackmail pictures, something he was sure he’d have been down for under normal circumstances. But this wasn’t a normal circumstance. It was rare enough as it was for his Papyrus to show real affection towards him and he wasn’t about to risk making that an even less common occurrence.

“Was only kiddin’, jeez,” Stretch muttered. Eager to get some rest himself, he turned over to is own little brother and laid down beside him, draping a gentle arm over his sleeping form.

The night was silent, only the soft, habit-induced breathing coming from the forms around him as ambiance.

“hey stretch?” He heard Red whisper when he was just beginning to teeter over the edge of half-consciousness into sleep.

“Yeah?” There was no point in not answering, and he’d be lying if he didn’t at least want to hear whatever it was he had to say.

Almost unexpectedly, all it was was a reserved yet peaceful “thanks”.

A thanks that spoke volumes.

And that was just the thing to bring him to a state of contentment that allowed him to slip quietly into a tranquil slumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah! hope you like the concept, lemme know if you'd like to see more (though i'll probably make more just for my own enjoyment anyway), thanks for reading! 
> 
> P.S. the next "chapter" which I'll post not too long after this isn't actually a real chapter just a too long explanation with some background and setting the scene. I may or may not properly write them out sometime in the future


	2. Four Skeletons One House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just some background plus a lit(lot)tle extra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I actually went back and tried to make this a little more coherent and readable cuz I’m not sure how reading a stream-of-consciousness type thing that isn’t my own is. 
> 
> You should probably still read it in a pretty stream-of-consciousness style. splitting it up just made the dialogue a bit easier to differentiate

So like I said, the fell bros were looking for a place somewhere outside the city around Mt. Ebott, and they found an ad for the swap bros’ place and called in and met up for a little interview.

They all met at a little cafe somewhere and at first they weren’t completely sure who they were looking for, and Edge was like ‘i forgot somehting in the car’ so Red waited outside the cafe, then saw a minute later who he thought was his bro and was like ‘you changed clothes? and since when do you smoke?’

The guy (who was actually stretch) looked down and was like “who u?” but then did a double take like “sans?! where’d you find that outfit? i thought you went to order coffees?”

Red is like *squint* _somethin’s not right_

And then Edge comes up behind him asking “sans, is that the ...” then trails off cuz he’s like this guy looks kinda familiar

And Red is like “boss ...?” cuz the guy he was talking to was obviously not his pap, and THEN Blue shows up with a little tray cup holder thing with four coffees and is like

“hey papy, those must be the applicants!” and like he pauses a sec noticing the awkward silence and even he sees that something strange is going on but he shakes it off and is like “well come on, we’re not just gonna stand here are we? I didn’t know what you guys like so i just got two black coffees”

So they all move to a table nearby and sit down, and Blue tells Stretch to stop smoking so he does and then they all kinda sit there for a minute, no one daring to break the silence, so finally Blue (the saint that he is) introduces himself

Edge immediately is like “WHAT?” and Blue repeats himself

And Red is like “no he heard ya alright, just ...”

And at first Blue is confused and waiting for him to Elaborate but then he remembers that _Oh Yeah! the nice guy who’d called had the same name as me, what a nice coincidence_ , but like neither papyruses knew about this cuz the sanses handled all the detail stuff

Then stretch speaks up like “and lemme guess your name is papyrus, right?” kinda sarcastic-like

Edge is like really put off like how the hell’d he know that and he like leans over to Red and mutters “i thought you only gave your name”

And Red is like “i thought i did too ...” and there’s just a super tense moment

Blue is like reeeeally hating this awkwardness so he’s like “okay! well now that that’s out of the way, let’s discuss living situation” so they do and of course there’s still kinda that thick air of apprehension but they let it be for the time being.

So fast forward to after the meeting, they’ve shaken hands and parted, agreeing to move in like a week from then or something, and once they’re in the car Edge is like “WHO ARE THEY? WHERE DID YOU FIND THEM?” just grilling Red with questions 

Red is like “will ya shut up a sec and lemme think?” and he’s like thinking about all the alternate universe on top of timeline stuff he’d theorized about back in the underground and like wondering if somehow when the barrier broke it just spit them all out in the same place (and Stretch is following a similar thought process on the bus ride home with Blue (i like to think they take the bus places cuz stretch is too lazy to get a license but he doesnt really trust blue driving either. in the fell situation they both have licenses (edge forced red to get one) but its not like edge ever even lets red drive his car)

So Edge is like “WELL?”

And Red is like “there’s some weird shit goin’ on that i’m not 100% sure about but it could very likely be possible i think maybe”

And Edge is just like “SHUT UP AND SPEAK WORDS”

And Red’s like “can’t shut up and speak at the same time now, can i”

And Edge is like the only reason i’m not hitting you right now is so we don’t crash so they just go home in silence the rest of the way, and no one in either household really discusses it further until the day comes where they’re moving in

The fell bros dont really have a lot of stuff so its like two boxes of edge’s stuff in the trunk and a backpack of Red’s stuff and they show up with a gift Edge had told Red to get beforehand and he did but it was like a gag gift (some kind of prank thing)

They ring the doorbell and stretch answers the door and red hands him the gift and stretch opens up a box or something and something jumps out or something idk you can fill in the blanks for whatever it is

stretch is thinkin like _i think we’ll be good friends this guy and i_ and they go into the house while edge is apologizing and half yelling at red about impressions and behaving and red’s just smirking and rolling his eyes

They get to the kitchen where Blue is making tacos and stretch’s eyes widen for a sec and he's like ‘oh hey guys whatever happens try not to upset my bro cool thanks’

Neither of the fellbros really know what that’s supposed to mean so they just nod, and edge kinda looks over at the stove and sees Blue putting something very wrong into the meat and is like “WTC ARE YOU DOING THAT’S NOT HOW THAT WORKS” (so much for polite first impressions) and like goes over and starts high key taking over while telling Blue how to do what and what he’s doing wrong and whatnot

so stretch turns to red and is like “ok you, you said your name was sans? that’ll get confusing really quickly ...” and he looks him up and down and sees the red shirt under his jacket and red converse so he goes “i’m gonna call you red, okay?”

Red obviously is like “what? no.”

but stretch ignores him and says “lemme show you to your room. got any stuff you wanna take up?”

and red’s like “just this backpack”

stretch raises an eyebrow like _okay?_ but doesnt say anything and just motions for him to follow and leads him up to their room and asks “you sure you guys don’t want separate rooms? we have two, and to be honest your ... brother? seems like a bit of a handful”

red kinda chuckles but is like “eheheh waddaya tryna say, huh?”

stretch is like kinda surprised at his reaction but like “oh nothin’ just ... alright, so here’s the room, there’s your closet, your bed, your lamp, your bathroom’s connected right there, shower, sink, yadda yadda” and he finishes with the tour and tellin’ him where to get stuff and whatnot, and when they get back downstairs the table is all set and Blue is staring all starry eyed at Edge who’s pretending not to notice

Edge prepares all the plates and they sit down for their first meal together, and once that’s done Blue and Edge clean the kitchen and Stretch and Red are about to go over to the living room to watch TV but Edge calls over to Red and tells him to go and get his boxes out of the car, but then is like “wait nvm i don’t trust you not to drop anything”

Stretch, the supportive bro that he is is kinda like _I don’t particularly like this other guy and i don’t particularly want him around my lil bro_ but Red asks him a question and so they end up out of the room and edge and blue are left to their own devices

Later on, after they’ve said goodnight and they’re in their respective rooms, Edge is setting up all his stuff around the room and hanging up his outfits and they have conversation about how Red needs to get some more clothes cuz he wears practically the same thing every day

Red’s like "it’s not like i ever go anywhere"

and Edge is like "but it’s disgusting"

and they kinda start bickering back and forth little, and then once Edge has all his stuff settled he goes “so you and ... the taller one, seem to be enjoying each others’ company”

Red chuckles and is like “you jealous?”

Edge predictably goes “of course not! why would i be jealous of someone as pathetic as you, you welp”

and Red’s like 'mhm sure thing' and then ((now i’m kinda just lettin’ my mind run here)) edge starts changing and red is watchin’ him all lustful-like and edge knows he is cuz this always happens and he starts like putting on a show or somethin and then he climbs into bed all slow and seductive and kinda straddles sans and is leaning down over him and THEN

Stretch opens the door cuz he wasn’t really paying attention - it’s a shared bathroom they have that’s in between blue’s room and theirs (think jack and jill bedroom but with a much bigger bathroom but not like master bedroom size bit but just bigger) and the door to their room is right next to blue’s door - and he kinda forgot for a second that there were other people living there now and so he ends up walking in on the fell bros and they both look up and stretch is like _the fuck is happin in here i thought those two were related????_  but no one dares to say anything and he just kinda backs away slowly and closes the door like nothing happened but he’s like low key freakin out like _who tf did we just invite into our home ???????_ _blue is WAY too trusting and breakfast tomorrow is gonna be somethin’ not lookin’ forward to that one bit_

 

and that’s only the beginning of all the insanity that goes down while they’re all living there together

 

and it is in fact an awkward breakfast cuz stretch tried to avoid coming down at all but blue made him cuz “first breakfast with the new roomies!” and it was a lot of awkward silences and avoiding contact, one horribly timed joke by stretch in an attempt to ease the tension, neither papyrus can eat (tho red can, cuz he's just hungry)

blue is like _why tc do i never know what’s happening with these three?_  

so finally he asks and stretch makes some pun about what happened and red like spits out his drink and isnt sure whether he should laugh or cry

blue is annoyed and edge is fuming like, his sans was bad enough with the jokes now he has to deal with two idiots who think they’re clever

eventually blue has to go to work and so does edge, stretch works a late shift and red doesn’t even have a job

i havent decided yet if and when blue finds out about the fell bros’ *ahem* intimacy, but for now (and by now i mean about the time the drabble i wrote took place, which is like a good nine months to a year after they moved in) i think he doesnt know outright but he has his like suspicions and again though i know at least some stuff about stretch i don’t know much about blue aside from the fact that he’s like tale pap but high (that might be an exaggeration) but he seems like the type of guy who’d be pretty accepting no matter what, so he like knows the fell bros had a super close (albeit in their own weird way) relationship but he has seen some suspect things from time to time that have him questioning just how close but he’s never seen or heard or been told anything to confirm or disprove any suspicions so he’s just kinda like they can do them and i’ll do me most of the time.

stretch on the other hand knows, and because the fell bros never really do anything unless blue is out of the house and there’s like a small window of time in between when edge gets home from work and stretch leaves where blue isn’t there, sometimes he hears things that make him wanna gouge his everything out (the first time it happened they hadn't realized that he was still in the house) but at the same time it's kinda like watching a train wreck sometimes, he’ll tell himself he’s just ignoring it but then he’s also really listening too, and there’s no denying he thinks it’s all weird ass shit they do but somethin’ about it man just, he can't help it? and after a year when he’s kinda used to it, sometimes he'll even like deliberately wait to go to work a little late sometimes just to see what’ll happen (he used to do the opposite after that first incident). I like to think he makes subtly inappropriate jokes about it all the time that blue like generally gets but doesn’t fully get, like he gets the joke he’s making he’s not clueless and he hates them but at the same time he doesnt actually know what his brother is really referencing so most of the time he just tells stretch to stop being so vulgar all the time

 

(jesus this is going on so much longer than i intended but i cant stop) so blue. ever since their first day in the house blue has had a bit of a crush on edge, and like sometimes it crosses his mind that the guy is technically his brother just from a different universe (after they’ve all sat down and had the discussion about it of course. red and stretch ended up talking a lot together about that and finally came up with a reasonable enough sounding explanation and found a way to explain it to their brothers that would make sense) but hey they’re still completely different people so i’ll just totally ignore the fact that if i tilt my head a little i can see the same guy

anyway so he he crushes on edge all the time and edge kinda acts oblivious for a while cuz he doesn’t really like him at first? but they find out some time after moving in that they actually have quite a bit in common, and tho he’s just a more annoying version of his sans, the thought of a guy stern enough to stand up to him and defy him is kind of a turn on, he’d look kinda nice on his knees in front of me -

BUT OF COURSE stretch notices when edge starts taking a bit of a liking to blue and he’s like “hey bud youve already fucked up your own brother i aint lettin ya fuck up mine too, physically or mentally”

and like red notices too and is like ;n; _y you no love me no more_ but in a much edgier way cuz underfell

so there’s a huge period of time where there’s like this mini feud going on in the house because edge is trying to strategically get around stretch to make a move on blue while stretch is using all of his power to keep them apart and then red is over on his own gettin sad cuz of his sad but true need for his bro’s approval and stretch notices that (but edge doesnt really, he just thinks red is being needy or something and he’s too busy focused on blue to really pay attention which is exactly what red is sad and mad about) and starts kinda tryna comfort him and red is like tf you think you are some kind of therapist? but eventually he kinda opens up and idk one particularly bad day for red (like maybe edge ends up taking blue out on a date or something) stretch is being extra comforting and they get a lil drunk together maybe and then end up making out some and at first theyre both like o shit waddup but then like HA ok that happened and move on, and some time passes and stuff is at kind of a stand still with blue and edge cuz blue saw how edge reacted to something on their date and was like “love has blinded me to your wicked ways, you monster” *dramatic damsel hand on the forehead* while red and stretch are slowly gettin closer together

*comin up for a breath*

so edge is finally noticing that somethin’s really up with red except now it’s a little different cuz red has stretch and of course, the douche that edge is, he gets super jealous and stats like ostracizing and going out of his way to make stretch’s life hell and this makes not only red mad but blue too cuz that’s his bro

and then edge is just like “WELL FUCK YOU ALL” and actually like leaves for a few days and no one knows where he went (he ended up visiting Undyne) and red kinda starts getting worried when he doesn’t come back the first day

after like three or four days he’s like 'ok i’m really worried'

and stretch is like 'bruh you crazee this bitch outta yo hair now why you aint throwin a party' but he knows that for whatever messed up reason red is super loyal to edge (and also he’s like, as fucked up as he is edge _is_ still his bro and he'd do the same for blue so)

and all the while blue is feelin kinda guilty thinking he was too harsh on edge (but stretch assures him a gazillion times that that is not the case at all he did nothing wrong)

so they end up doing a little search thing, just lookin around town and askin around and callin his cellphone which he won't pick up, and stretch asks if edge has anyone he’d go to and all red can think of is undyne maybe but he doesn’t know where she’s living on the surface so they go to fell alphys wherever she’s holed up (red had been to her place once or twice) and get undyne’s number (she wont give them the address saying she doesnt owe red that much)

they call undyne and undyne like knows that edge was taking a break from everyone but doesn’t know that they didn’t actually know where he was so she’s like confused at first as to why they're so urgent but she tells them where to come (reluctantly, cuz they make up some excuse that idk i cant think of anything right now but something convincing enough to get her to trust red for that time being cuz usually she hates him)

they show up around the same time edge is getting back from work and he’s like ‘you bitches think you can just show up here?’

and red’s like ‘yeah fuckwad when you go missin for a week people go lookin’

and edge is like ‘ha! not like you actually care you just need someone to clean up after your filthy ass’

and red snaps like ‘oh sorry your highness, did we huwt your precious feewins? had to run away like a coward didnt ya? and you call me lazy’

and then they start fightin and no one’s daring to get between them, not even undyne, and it starts escalating and then (i decided on the earlier thing that actually this is when blue find’s out, maybe six months? into knowing each other) all the sudden before anyone can even figure out what just happened they’re on the floor making out

undyne (who knew about their relationship but thinks edge could do so much better) is just like “ayeayeaye you two get a room, i need a drink from all this yelling, YOU ALL GET OFF MY LAWN YOUD BETTER NOT STILL BE OUT HERE WHEN I COME BACK TO GET MY GROCERIES”

blue is too stunned at what’s happening to even hear her but stretch is like resisting the urge to just cover up his little bro’s eyes at the obscenity before them, and he finally shouts at them to get the fuck off the ground and the fell bros come to their senses like there are probably undyne’s neighbors watching or something

so they collect themselves and leave and pretend nothing happened

stretch is just like angry (that red went back to edge, and that they had to expose all that to blue) and exhausted and so they get home and he doesn’t even speak to anyone, not even blue when he tries, just goes up to his room, grabs a pack o cigs, and leaves the house

everyone’s first thought is a repeat of what happened with edge (cuz they both papayas) but he comes back a few hours later, significantly calmed

red’s like *squint* “are you high?”

and stretch is like “totally not what r you talkin about ya loony”

and red’s like 'yeah ok whateva, you’d better stay away from your bro then if you dont want him to know you were out doing drugs with god knows who'

(and jesus christ this has 3500 words already that’s more than the next chapter of my fic what am i doing)

YOU KNOW WHAT IM GONNA STOP HERE, TO BE CONTINUED

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's that!
> 
> I'll finish out that event sometime later, stay tuned


	3. Dating Start!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fell and Blue go on their first date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Great thanks to my bestest friendo ever who beta'd this for me even thought she hates fontcest (she's the best)

Red was suspiciously absent from the living room as Fell waited (im)patiently by the front door for Blue to finish giving his brother instructions for dinner.

“Don’t forget to turn the stove off when it’s done,” he could hear coming from the kitchen, followed by the low murmur of his counterpart’s voice. They were probably hugging or some other form of disgustingly physical affection. 

They emerged a minute later, Blue clinging to the taller skeleton’s arm with an ecstatic smile plastered onto his face. He let go to bound over to Fell and slip on the shoes that were waiting on a shelf by the door. “Finally,” Fell muttered under his breath, glancing at his watch pointedly. 

“Hey, Sans?” Stretch called as they were exiting the house. Blue turned towards him instantly. 

“Hm?”

“Just ... have a good night. Be safe.” He looked like he wanted to say more, but a meaningful look towards Fell would have to do, hopefully conveying its intended message: Anything happens to my little brother, you’re dust.”

“I’ll be fine, Papy,” Blue assured him, seemingly ignorant to the warning in Stretch’s voice. Despite himself, Fell shuddered before turning again to leave, beckoning Blue wordlessly. Blue gave one last wave and headed out behind Fell. 

“So, where are we going?” He asked brightly. He hopped into the passenger’s seat of Fell’s black sports car, thanking Fell who held the door open for him. Once he’d gotten around to the driver’s side and sat down himself, Fell answered. 

“It’s a surprise.” He started up the car and peeled out of the driveway, speeding through the neighborhood with the top of the convertible down. Blue hadn’t really expected any other answer, so he rested his elbow on the side of the door and looked up at the sky full of stars, relishing in the way the wind battered against his bones. 

The ride there was uneventful. Blue knew not to try and make conversation; Fell liked silence in the car, especially when he was the one driving (he most always was) and Blue respected that. It was nice to simply enjoy the ride. He’d been surprised and delighted to find that Fell shared his interest in driving a convertible down the highway. The only differences between them were that Blue’s dream car was blue, and Fell actually had a car. 

When they pulled into the parking lot of the establishment, Blue’s interest was immediately piqued by the name of the place Fell had chosen. The exterior looked ... well, expensive. Couples dined on a patio lit by ambient torchers, waiters threaded through tables carrying sizzling platters trailed by deliciously aromatic smoke. 

“I know you love tacos, so I found the finest of what the humans would call Mexican cuisine in the area.”

Literal starts sparkled in Blue’s eye sockets as his gazed up at Fell. How thoughtful! What had Stretch been talking about, claiming this monster was selfish? This entire evening he’d planned said otherwise. 

Fell held out an arm to escort Blue in, which the small skeleton took eagerly. He clung on, beaming as they entered through the front door. The host looked surprised to see two skeleton monsters walk in, but he shook off his initial shock and asked politely, “Table for two?” 

“Reservation,” Fell answered, “Under Papyrus.”

A look of recognition passed over the host’s face and he nodded, grabbing two menus and two place settings before nodding at the two. “Right this way.” He led them through the restaurant to the patio, setting them up at a table by the railing that overlooked a river. It was a rather secluded table – just like Fell had asked for. “Your waiter will be by shortly,” said the host before leaving them. 

Blue sighed contentedly. Their view was perfect – the moon reflected off the glassy surface of the water, surrounded by thousands of tiny pinpricks of light. Blue had been sure to move somewhere with a clear night sky and had wasted no time learning as many human constellations as he could. It had certainly been worth it. 

Fell watched as Blue stared up at the sky dreamily, a small smile tugging at the corner of his sharp jaw. His brother’s counterpart sure was something, nothing like the lazy, good-for-nothing skeleton he’d been raised by. He still questioned often how they’d never been dusted in their underground. But he could dwell on that later. This night was about him and Blue. 

Blue turned to his date, fists pressed to his sternum. “Fell, how much do you know about constellations?”

Before he could answer a waiter came over, introducing themself and asking their drink choices. Fell ordered a wine, while Blue simply asked for water. The waiter left and Blue turned back to Fell expectantly. 

Fell considered the question for a moment, then pointed up at the sky. “See those three starts that form the belt of the one called Orion? If you look down and tot the left of the formation’s bottom left star, you will find a star called Sirius, the brightest of stars next to the sun.” He didn’t think Blue’s eye lights could get any brighter than they already were. Fell smirked fondly and picked up his menu, prompting Blue to do the same, who consulted him over food choices before deciding on “Tacos Mexicanos”. 

The waiter was back promptly with their drinks and took their orders. When they left, Blue and Fell spent their time waiting discussing the night sky and pointing out constellations. It was chalking up to be a pleasant evening. Blue would have to tell his brother all about it the next day. 

After a while there was a lull in conversation. Blue sighed and rested his chin on his hand, looking out over the river. It wasn’t until he felt a gaze on him that he glanced over at Fell to find him staring back with likely the softest expression he’d ever seen on the hardened skeleton. He reciprocated with a small grin of his own, happier in that moment than he’d been in a long time, which was saying a lot – he was pretty happy majority of the time. 

Fell was opening his mouth to say something when the waiter arrived with two steaming plates, setting them down in front of Fell and Blue respectively. “Anything else?” the waiter asked. 

“No thank you, that will be all,” Fell responded. 

“Wait,” Blue spoke up, “Excuse me but I think you gave me the wrong order.” Fell’s suspicious glance towards the waiter went unnoticed by Blue, who continued to speak albeit rather ignorantly about the state of his meal. “These aren’t tacos.”

“That is what you ordered, sir,” said the waiter, voice dripping with condescension. 

“But ... these can’t be. Where’s the hard shell? There’s no lettuce or cheese.”

While he tried to ignore the disdained look he was receiving from the waiter, Fell had other plans. Just as they were about to make a retort, Fell spoke up, visibly irate. “Should I summon your manager and have you fired for insubordination?”

“Whoa, Fell, it’s not that big of a deal. They can just take them back and make new ones.” 

“Your order isn’t the issue here,” Fell snapped, causing Blue to flinch back at his tone. He turned back to the waiter. “It is your job to accommodate your customers, it it not? It is not your place to tell him what is and isn’t wrong with his food.”

“Excuse me, my place? –”

“It’s really okay, Fell –”

“Enough,” he snapped, cutting the both of them off sharply. “You will take back the plate and apologize to my date for –”

“Papyrus, stop!” Blue’s chair scraped across the tiled floor as he stood, phalanges gripping the edge of the table. “I said it’s fine. I’m very sorry,” he addressed the waiter, “I must have made a mistake, but it’s fine.” When no one moved, Blue sighed. “You can leave now. Thank you for the meal, it looks delicious.” 

The waiter left with a huff, one that would have had Fell diving back in for more had Blue not gripped his arm across the table, sending a clear message with his look the same way his brother could. He only released his grip when he felt Fell sit back in his seat and settle in, still seething but at least no longer about to pounce. 

While Fell sat stewing in his own fury, Blue’s mind was reeling. He still wouldn’t go as far as to say his brother was right about Fell but ... the sharp skeleton in front of him certainly had more sides to him than Blue had seen, at least not in full force. Had Fell been hiding it, or had he just been blind to it? The latter wouldn’t surprise him, considering he always made a conscious effort to see the best in people, but now he knew what his brother had meant when he’d told him he shouldn’t always take people at face value. 

He hadn’t been talking about judging a book by its cover.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll probably write stretch's and red's end of that night at some point as well


	4. Dating Tense!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little honeymustard night in

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place after (or during, really) Dating Start!, as the name would suggest

Upon hearing the sound of the front door closing Red emerged from his room. “They gone?” he called down from the balcony. **  
**

“Yeah,” Stretch muttered, then called out realizing Red couldn’t hear him. _Me too_ , he thought, hearing the heavy sigh somewhere above him. It wasn’t something they’d discussed outright, but there was an understood blanket of apprehension, perhaps even resentment, at the prospect of their brothers’ relationship.

Red took his time trudging down the stairs, bitter as ever. He didn’t stop in the living room or by the front door where Stretch stood on his way to the kitchen, and emerged a minute later with two bottles, honey and mustard, both spiked with alcohol and magic. Neither skeleton needed verbal communication to know how they would be spending their evening in.

“Do you-” Stretch began once they were both seated on opposite ends of their leather couch.

“No.”

He would never understand how Red always seemed to guess his questions so accurately before he asked. It was never a matter of him spewing a random answer, and right then his firm response told Stretch all he needed to know to not even attempt to bring up the subject.

Red had always been a relatively closed off monster, understandable considering where he and his brother came from. Stretch had come to understand certain behaviours he exhibited that strictly forbade much-needed discussions, which went against every bit of instinct he’d built to discuss things openly with his own brother. Which wasn’t to say that there were absolutely no secrets between them, but generally when there was some sort of conflict they worked it out before it could escalate. There was one instance when things had gone unresolved for quite some time, which had been the basis for their initiating an honesty policy, but that had been years before they’d escaped the underground let alone met the brothers from Underfell - asking and discussing was practically second nature at that point.

But he respected Red, and that meant being aware of boundaries, so instead of talking out the situation looming above them, he sat quietly beside his smaller compatriot and drank.

The TV flashed in the general vicinity of his vision, but he paid it no attention as he sipped on the bottle in his hands, much less fervently than the skeleton beside him. They took turns getting up to retrieve more from the kitchen, drinking in relative silence for nearly an hour before Red spoke up.

“What am I supposed to do?” It was barely a mumble, but Stretch could tell from the accusatory tone what he was asking about. It was something he would constantly press but didn’t have an easy answer for. He was trying to form an explanation in his mind when Red surprised him by continuing.

“You didn’t see it,” he sighed. “You didn’t live it. _You don’t know_.” The desperation in his voice was almost tangible, a plea for understanding that wouldn’t come. “I can’t just - just drop him, it’s not - like I don’t …” Stretch could tell he was getting frustrated by the way his magic flushed to his cheeks and red-tinted tears pooled in his eye sockets, ready to spill over.

He placed a gentle hand on Red’s shoulder. “Hey, I get it -”

“You don’t!” He lashed out, attempting to stand but resigning to sit when the room began to tilt. “You keep saying that he’s - he’s not good for me an’ y’know what? He’s the only thing for me, okay? Yeah, he’s not some - some stupid, happy-go-lucky -”

“ **D o n ’ t.** ” Stretch cut him off. “Don’t you dare finish that sentence. Yes, my brother can be a little naive at times but he is not stupid by any means. His only flaw is that he sees the best in people, even scumbags like your brother who don’t even have anything to -”

“So you get to bitch about my brother - who you know nothing about by the way - but when I make obvious statements it’s suddenly the worst thing in the world?”

“I’m _saying_ that justified or not your brother’s behaviour doesn’t really warrant him the benefit of the doubt. The way he treats you -”

“Which you don’t understand.”

“ _The way he treats you_ , the way you react - I don’t care what I do and don’t understand, I can tell just by looking at your face that it affects you so much more than you say. He brushes you off all the time, he goes and _dates_ another monster when you’re …”

“When we’re _what_?” he challenged.

“… All I’m saying is you deserve better.”

“Better as in you?”

“That’s not … Red you’re missing the point.”

“No, you’re missing the point. You’re sayin’ I need better than _protection_ in a place where someone with my HP is a sitting duck, better than putting up with my -”

“Sans! All I’m saying is that he could stand to treat you in such a way that doesn’t reinforce in you some _ridiculous_ notion that you’re absolute shit when he lashes out for every stupid little thing.”

“… They’re not stupid things.”

But it held no conviction.

The TV rambled on with no consciousness, filling the air around them with incongruous laughter and conversation.

“So what do you think I should do?”

Stretch’s shoulders sank, sighing with a heavy shrug like the weight of the world was resting on his shoulders. He didn’t have an answer, not really, so he dealt with it the only way he knew how with Red. “Get with me instead?” he chuckled halfheartedly. Red went along with it.

“Is that a question or a demand?” Red purred, waggling his brow bones so excessively Stretch had to break character to burst out laughing.

He cleared his nonexistent throat and straightened his face as well as he could, then dropped his voice to a low rumble. “I said, get with me instead.”

When he said it, he hadn’t been expecting Red to actually comply, especially not by crawling clumsily into his lap and lacing his arms around his neck, and he certainly hadn’t been anticipating Red inching his head forward, maintaining perfect, unwavering eye contact the entire time.

Red’s composure broke down when he took in Stretch’s terrified expression, while Stretch simply sat back, face bright enough to light up a room.

He figured he might as well throw all expectations out the window when Red decided to pull his skull close and press their teeth together. It was hesitant, to say the least. Stretch wasn’t exactly sure how he should be responding, and Red hadn’t given him much of a warning. If he was being honest, he was tempted to kiss back, but … but nothing. They were home alone, and filled with alcohol, and any moral dilemma could be cancelled out by the fact that the lover of the monster he was presumably about to make out with was currently out on a date with his own brother - it was just a mess of a situation he wasn’t willing to clean up at that moment. For that night, he’d give in to his baser instincts. Repercussions could wait until morning.

When he looked up, however, the confidence that had been plastered onto Red’s face had given way to some internal conflict he could see raging inside his mind. He could make a pretty safe assumption at what, and he knew which side he thought should (and, a bit selfishly, wanted to) win, if not the war then at least the battle, but there was a major difference between “should” and “would,” and it wasn’t the names of the skeletons involved.

In the end he wasn’t sure if it was desire or curiosity or a substantial amount of alcohol that won out, but Red was on him before his sluggish mind could react. The first connection of their teeth ended up painful, clashing together at an unreasonable speed that had Red reeling back a moment later with pained laughter. It wasn’t enough to deter him, of course.

Bone met bone in a blinding flash as Red pressed into the skeleton beneath him with fervor he’d never exacted on anyone besides his … with fervor that was much out of character considering his typically lazy disposition.

Stretch was the first to delve deeper, his glowing tongue a welcome intrusion into Red’s eager jaw. They both felt around clumsily, experimentally, as Red tried not to think about the fact that kissing Stretch was so much different than Fell. For one it was gentler (that was no surprise), Stretch constantly pulling back ever so slightly to check on him, caressing his skull as if it were made of glass. As Red began to explore Stretch’s jaw, he couldn’t help but feel the slightest sense of familiarity. Where his wandering phalanges usually met with filed points was simply smooth, flat bone save for one canine, but the moans he elicited by thumbing the curve of his eye socket were … almost too familiar.

Red sat back, eyes half lidded, panting slightly. Seeing the worry beginning to form in Stretch’s eyes, he leaned forward to place a featherlight kiss onto his teeth in a show of affection that surprised even himself. He then shifted his dead down to the vertebra of Stretch’s neck, running his tongue lavishly across each disc before biting down onto his clavicle, drawing out a strange mixture between a wince and a … growl?

He probably shouldn’t have done that.

He glanced up to find Stretch giving him an odd look, which sent his anxiety skyrocketing. Of course he’d managed to fuck this up when it had barely even started. “S-sorry … a-are you okay?” he asked cautiously, carefully wiping the bit of marrow he’d drawn out with his sleeve. Stretch nodded after studying him for an awkward minute. Red wasn’t sure whether to continue or stop until Stretch hooked a gentle phalange under his jaw and pulled him into a tired kiss, instantly quelling the small skeleton’s nerves.

The hesitant moment ended and Stretch returned to absolutely ravaging Red’s mouth, testing out every nook and cranny for spots that would make Red shiver and moan. He broke away suddenly, out of breath. “Get up a sec.” Red slid off his lap and to the side, and Stretch didn’t give him time to wonder before pressing him back into the couch so that he was perched above him. “Is this okay?” he panted. Red responded by grabbing his shirt collar and pulling back down to his mouth without a word.

Stretch’s demeanor seemed to change instantly from cautious to starved as he burrowed a hand beneath Red’s shirt to stroke and pull at his ribs and spine. Exploratory phalanges delved into every and any space they could, testing what would effectively draw out every heavy breath and curse. Each sound was a symphony, driving him further until Red was reduced to a sweaty, panting mess who had no choice but to take it all, relishing in each calculated ministration. Stretch began snaking down Red’s body, stopping every few inches to experiment with any vulnerable spot he could find. Before he could reach the glow pooling around his pelvis, a particularly harsh tug at his spine had Red screaming out Papyrus’s name.

Stretch’s hand stopped short of Red’s iliac crest, sensing the sudden tension that overtook his body.

“Hey, Red …”

Red was at an impasse for words, unable to force out an explanation, unsure of how well he could play it off. Not very, he presumed; his ever so slight shaking was a dead giveaway to his suddenly panicked state of mind, flooded with thoughts of regret and certain blood red pair of eyelights.

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

Red’s silence was tell enough. Stretch sat up and back onto the seat at the opposite end of the couch, and Red was left on his back, not knowing what to do. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Stretch - hell, he more than just liked him if the both of their unattended magic had anything to say for it - it was just that the allegiance to his brother that had been instilled in him from childhood was … well, quite the cockblocker, for lack of  a better word. The fact that said brother didn’t feel nearly as tied down was something Sans would continue to justify in his head repeatedly, unable to face the possibility that he may have in fact simply moved on. It didn’t help that his supposed current lover and his new potential interest shared the exact same name.

Stretch was still for a while, thinking about everything and nothing, wondering how he could get Red to see the excessive amount of flaws in his reasoning for sticking with his brother, but what Red had said hadn’t been wrong: he _didn’t_ know or understand their situation. Yet still, he truly believed Red would be better off without Fell always hovering over his shoulder, dictating his every action and emotion. But blunt observation, he’d come to realize, would get him nowhere with Red. In that aspect he and Blue were almost exactly alike, always committed to a point despite what might seem clearly logical to anyone else. And, of course, there always seemed to be at least some degree of truth and rationing behind their arguments despite the overwhelming amount of flaws. He couldn’t resist either of them.

By the time the magic gathered in Red’s pelvis had died down, he was feeling exhausted, both physically and emotionally. He almost missed the prompting by Stretch to move closer. Before he could ask the question, Stretch reassured him that he wanted nothing but to rest - no talking like he’d normally try, just a much-needed nap.

They both fell asleep on the couch, Red curled into Stretch’s chest feeling oddly secure in his arms, a feeling that instantly vanished when he was woken by his brother returning home and passing by the couch without so much as a glance.


	5. Bucket List

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red and Stretch have a little discussion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place after that first date that happens between Blue and Edge 
> 
> A lot of these will probably be based on writing prompts or requests if anyone wants to give any (heres my [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/anartiststale)

Red wandered into the living room, relying on muscle memory to maneuver him down the steps while he stared at the small yellow square of paper in his hand. He stopped when he reached the bottom, glancing up at Stretch lazily sprawled out on the couch watching the television. Approaching him deceptively casually, Red dropped down beside him without at word, still gripping the slip of paper in his phalanges. Red could feel Stretch’s gaze shift from the TV down to him, but he ignored it for the time being. He’d sit a minute longer and let Stretch stew in his curiosity.

Finally, after a drawn out silence in which Stretch’s inquisitiveness was just beginning to wane, Red spoke up.

“What the heck is this?” He held out the post-it-note in front of the taller skeleton’s face.

He simply raised a brow bone before answering, “My bucket list.”

“It’s just a fucking post-it-note with my name on it.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Red could feel his cheeks heat up ever so slightly despite the irritated, disbelieving expression that still hung on his face. He didn’t bother to respond to the smirk on Stretch’s face, but the mood, at least from his perspective, didn’t fail to shift to one less whimsical. It wasn’t the terrible flirting that bothered him, at least not exclusively – Stretch had been doing that practically since they’d first moved in together.  It wasn’t even the implications behind it that had his proverbial gut twisting into knots. No, it had all to do with the events that had transpired only a couple of days prior.  After their brothers had had their night out together, and they’d gotten a bit cozier than usual, Red was finding Stretch’s usually humorous advances less of a joke and more awkward than they were meant to be, because now he knew that they had very real undertones that he wasn’t quite sure how to deal with.

“Stretch ...” he started.

“That’s my name,” Stretch responded, digging into the pocket of his shorts for a cigarette. He took it out along with a lighter and didn’t hesitate to take a drag before putting all of his focus onto the skeleton beside him.

Red had half a mind to tell him to stop before either of their brothers came in and yelled about smoking inside the house, but both Fell and Blue were out grocery shopping and Red knew any attempt to stop his brother’s copy would prove fruitless. If both Papyrus’s had one thing in common it was that majority of the time they did what they wanted regardless of anyone’s instruction, especially each others’.

“I ...” Red couldn’t seem to figure out just what he wanted to say, and his anxiety kicking up at the thought of an actual discussion on the topic of whatever was or wasn’t going on between them wasn’t helping him coerce his thoughts into something coherent.

“I know,” Stretch sighed, surprising Red. “I’m not expecting you to jump my bones or anything, just ... the thing you’ve got goin’ on with your brother? Not –” he cut off the beginnings of a protest from Red, “not the ... the sibling thing, I’m talking about the way he treats you. And I know, we’ve been over this before already I just ... look, I care about you Red, and I hate seeing you hurt. And I’m not asking you to just up and drop your brother – he is your brother after all – just ... consider yourself for once?” he trailed off.

Red sat still, expression blank as he stared down at the floor. There were a million thoughts and none at the same time running through his head. Stretch was right, they had been through it already, and it hadn’t been a delightful discussion by any means. And on some level he did know that his treatment was less than ideal, but like Stretch had said, Fell was his brother, and he meant the world to him. He’d do anything for him. As much as he liked Stretch, and as curious as he was to see where something between them could lead, even the thought of being with anyone else left an unpleasant feeling in his soul.

Sure, Fell may not have operated on the same principle, but ... he was Fell ... he ... Stretch just didn’t understand.

Before he could voice any of his rationalizing, the front door slammed open much more forceful than necessary and Fell came barreling in with Blue on his tail, both dripping wet from the rain that had just started up, Blue yelling about something as they made their way to the kitchen, arms weighed down by grocery bags.

Stretch hoped that Red might ignore their presence and respond to him, but instead he stood, as expected, masking his inner conflict with a lazy grin, and sauntered into the kitchen behind them.


End file.
